Juana Lopez

I attribute my success to discipline, focus, and persistence - never giving up even when I question myself. There are times when I wonder if I'm still adding value or making a difference, especially when I'm pushing Better For You products and see people buying the unhealthy options. But I've learned that this work requires endurance. What I'm doing today won't bring rewards tomorrow - I actually don't see the fruit of my work until at least a year later. It's an investment for the future. Understanding that timeline and staying committed to the long-term vision, even when results aren't immediate, is what has carried me forward. I remind myself that I get paid to bring solutions to the industry, and that responsibility keeps me focused on the bigger picture.

The best career advice I've ever received is to never hold grudges in business and to keep all your relationships positive. You could be mad today, but that doesn't mean you have to hold a grudge and continue to be mad tomorrow. In my industry, relationships are everything, and we always need to be reflecting on what's worth holding onto. Negative sentiment should not be something we keep - it's poison. Let it go, because life continues and it's going to be okay. It's hard to let go when you feel like you're being blamed for something you didn't do, or when someone's behavior toward you is negative, but you shouldn't hold onto it or take it too personally. Keeping your relationships as positive as possible is essential to moving forward.

I would say don't let others try to define what you can do. When I was promoted, I was told this is a man's industry and that being a broker in the Mexico region would be harder for me because it was all men - both in our company and among Costco buyers. Back then, 10 years ago, I felt like they were trying to stop me from asking for my promotion, telling me not to get upset because it was expected to be harder for me. But I continued to push the boundaries and said no, why does this have to define me? I can do anything that men can do - strategize, learn, and certify myself in packaging and everything else. I didn't let it hold me back. So my advice for younger women is to never let anyone else define your potential or tell you what you can't achieve. Push past those limits, advocate for yourself, and keep moving forward even when others underestimate you.

The biggest challenges right now are the scarcity of materials like oils and petroleum, and how that impacts consumer packaged goods. People don't really understand the connection, but a lot of CPG packaging is made from polymers, and all of that is affected by price increases and limited availability. For instance, I have basmati rice coming from India, and their packaging is going to be affected soon. We have to start thinking about alternative packaging options, like more natural fibers. The political conflicts going on around the world are disrupting international business - freight is being affected, carriers, transportation - and all of that translates into price increases for consumer goods. The biggest challenge is figuring out how to mitigate these issues, how to negotiate, and how long we can hold current prices without passing increases on to consumers. Especially for commodities like rice and beans, which are very basic foods that people should have access to - they shouldn't become a luxury. And I cannot get anything done right now without mentioning tariffs. I don't think the average person understands that tariffs are being paid by companies to the government, but they get passed along to the end product. Consumers are already paying for it. Everyone thinks it means more money for trade, but they don't realize the consumer is paying the tariff in their products. Even things like crude oil scarcity affect everyone, not just gas prices for your car - your goods are transported in freight that needs gas, so it all translates into increases whether we think we're affected or not.

I would say honesty is the most important value to me. We need full disclosure from companies so we can evaluate if something can be imported into another country. A lot of companies don't want to disclose all their ingredients because they feel like they're going to be robbed or someone will create something better with what they created. But I value honesty above anything because we can get into real trouble if something is not disclosed. Even something as tiny as a poppy seed - you cannot import poppy seeds into Mexico because they're considered under the drug category. I believe the law needs to be updated because just because something is within the same family doesn't mean that plant is actually what you make the drug from. But it's prohibited, and we once tried to sell muffins that had poppy seeds. That's the kind of example that shows why honesty is so critical - it would have been a serious problem. Integrity would come close to being as important as honesty, just making sure we're always operating with integrity and continuing to innovate ourselves.